YOUR LETTERS: What purpose did the local plan serve?

Ted Atkinson, Lutton

When a local plan was devised by the district council back in 2006, a decade ago now, it allocated a certain number of properties allowed for in a given area.

In the parish of Lutton, that number was 40, with the stipulation that any homes should only be for the use of agriculture, horticulture or forestry, with the added caveat that they must serve a genuine ‘local need’.

Up to the time Lutton was removed from the local plan and the boundary of development was changed, the original allocation of homes had been exceeded by more than 300 per cent.

Given these changes, it meant that only exceptional needs could be met, but the long run of applications for executive housing has reached an all-time high, with one in Lutton itself and around 15 along the Lutton Gowts area, one developer promising two affordable homes to sweeten the pot.

It all begs the question: what purpose did the local plan serve?

Did it mean anything at all? Did anybody even bother to read it? It certainly cost the council enough to prepare.

I can only conclude that the person who researched and produced it might well be excused for being appalled at this total waste of time and public money.